


The Art of Compromise

by houdini74



Category: Schitt's Creek
Genre: Committed Relationship, Domestic Fluff, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-26
Updated: 2019-02-26
Packaged: 2019-11-06 03:05:14
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,755
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17931626
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/houdini74/pseuds/houdini74
Summary: David tells Stevie that he worries about how the need for compromise will affect his relationship with Patrick.





	The Art of Compromise

David is pacing back and forth in front of the desk in the motel office, gesturing wildly. Ever since he moved in with Patrick about a month ago, he’s taken to stopping by the motel once or twice a week “just to make sure she was okay.” Truth be told, she’s glad to see him, not that she’d ever admit it. Between their busy jobs and growing relationships they don’t spend as much time together as they used to and it’s just possible that she misses him. 

As she watches him, David finishes his story, exclaiming, “And then, she didn’t even buy anything!”

He huffs his frustration when he sees that she’s laughing at him and rolls his eyes in response before coming to lean on the desk, staring at her knowingly.

“So, how are things with you and Emir?”

Despite herself, she can’t stop the ridiculous smile that spreads across her face. 

“Look at you, so happy,” David says, amusement flashing in his eyes. “Soon you’ll be skipping into town, pulling the petals off of daisies…”

“No. I won’t.” Stevie rolls her eyes back at him. “I mean, I wish we could spend more time together, he travels a lot.”

Wanting to change the subject, she tries to turn the tables on David.

“How are things with you and Patrick? Are you enjoying the domestic routine of after supper dishes and morning coffee?” 

Instead of the sarcastic response she expects, there’s a long silence as David fiddles with the brochures on the end of the desk.

“David…?” she asks. She hopes that nothing is seriously wrong between him and Patrick. She’s seen the change in David since he and Patrick have come together and there’s a calmness to him that she’s never known before. Not, of course, that David isn’t still the same dramatic and mercurial person that she met five years ago, but Patrick soothes his anxieties and grounds him. She finds it both sickening and disgustingly sweet. 

“You may not be aware,” David replies. “But occasionally, I find it difficult to compromise.”

She snorts in response, as multiple examples of David’s intransigence flash through her mind.

“Fortunately, your boyfriend is an actual grown-up who puts up with you regularly, so I know that he knows how to compromise,” she says.

David continues to play with the brochures, not meeting her eyes.

“It’s just….I moved into his space, so he shouldn’t have to be the one doing all the compromising. Plus, it doesn’t seem right if I get my way all the time.”

“Okay, so you should compromise then.” She wants to be sarcastic, but she knows that David has never had to contemplate making changes to accomodate someone else’s needs. That he’s even mentioning it all is a breakthrough of sorts.

“But….” David begins, the frustration evident on his face.

Stevie smirks at him, enjoying the fact that the potential need for compromise is clearly killing him. She loves seeing him struggle between his self-imposed standards and his desire to do the right thing for Patrick.

“Yes?” She asks, a falsely sympathetic tone in her voice.

“...Everyone knows that wire clothes hangers are really bad for your clothes. And, the dish rack should be on the right side of the sink. And who uses bar soap anymore?” David is wound up now, and he waves his hands dramatically, accidentally knocking the entire stack of brochures onto the floor. He stares at the brochures in frustration, before huffing at them angrily and bending down to gather them up.

Stevie doesn’t bother to hide her laughter, both at the brochures and David’s list of critical areas for compromise. 

“David, none of those things are that big a deal. You can buy new hangers and it’s not like you’re ever going to use that soap.” 

David thrusts the stack of brochures onto the counter and crosses his arms defensively. 

“I’m just afraid that if I can’t even deal with the little things, what will happen when I need to compromise on something more important?”

“Remind me what you did last weekend?” she asks.

“Why? What does that have to do with anything?” David demands.

Stevie stares at him, her silence insisting that he answer the question.

“Fine. Patrick and I went to Elmdale.”

“And…”

“And we went to a baseball game.”

“Why would you do that, when you hate sports?”

“Patrick wanted to go.”

“So why didn’t you let him go alone?”

“Because he wanted me to come with him and because I wanted to spend time with him.” David’s frustration with her questions is growing.

“So, you did a thing that you hate simply because it would make Patrick happy?”

David finally looks up, a smile creeping across his face. “Yes. Yes I did.”

The next day Mr Rose has the late shift, so she’s off work at two o’clock. She swings by the store to get some apples on the way home. There’s no sign of David, but Patrick greets her warmly from behind the counter.

“Hello, Stevie!” 

“Hey.” He’s always so friendly and agreeable, she doesn’t know how he does it. She’d find it extremely irritating, except that she genuinely likes Patrick despite of her general aversion to niceness.

“You just missed David, he had to run some packages to the post office.”

“That’s okay, I see more than enough of him now that he stops in to visit all the time.”

She can tell from the grin on Patrick’s face that he sees through her deflection. After yesterday’s conversation with David, she really wants to ask Patrick about how things are going between the two of them but she can’t think of a subtle way to bring it up. Fuck it, she thinks, it’s not like subtly has ever been a strong suit.

“So, how’s it going now that David’s moved in?” She asks. “You haven’t murdered him in his sleep yet, so that’s a good sign.”

“How do you know I’m not just waiting for the right moment?” Patrick replies cheekily. 

“Or is it that the two of you aren’t spending any time sleeping?” she says with a smirk and has the satisfaction of watching Patrick’s ears turn pink.

“Seriously, how is it going? David’s not the easiest person and as his friend, I feel an obligation to check up on you guys.”

“Are you sure it’s because you’re his friend and not just because you’re hoping to hear about some drama?”

She grins at him and raises her eyebrows to demand an answer to her question.

“I love having him there, I wouldn’t have things any other way.” As always, Patrick’s sincerity makes her want to throw up a little, she doesn’t know how David puts up with it. 

“But it does make me crazy that he can’t be on time for anything. We’ve only opened on time once in the past week, I’m thinking of changing our store hours.”

“Far be it from me to give relationship advice, but have you talked to him about it? Other than telling him that he’s going to be late, that is.” Patrick shakes his head as she continues.

“Look, you need to know that he’s worried that his inability to compromise will hurt your relationship. Until he met you, I don’t think he ever had to compromise on anything. The fact that he’s even thinking about it is a big step. You should talk to him and see what happens.”

“Hmmm,” Patrick replies and she can see him thinking over what she’s said. She picks up the bag of apples.

“I don’t suppose you’re giving discounts in exchange for relationship advice?” She asks.

“Ha,” Patrick replies, “Who do you think I am, David?”

She grins at him as she pays full price for the apples. 

“You should come for dinner tomorrow night,” Patrick suggests. 

“I’d like that.”

To her surprise, she finds that she actually means it. Her long distance relationship with Emir means she spends most of her evenings texting into the night and having a face to face conversation with real people has a lot of appeal. 

When she arrives for dinner, she’s not surprised to see that Patrick is doing the cooking. But she is surprised to find David cutting up vegetables for a salad. She smiles to herself as she pours three glasses of the wine she brought. She suspects that David has maybe learned to compromise more than he realizes. 

After dinner, David insists on doing the dishes and she laughs as he pointedly moves the dish rack from one side of the sink to the other. From the way Patrick rolls his eyes, she can tell that this is a regular occurance, but they are both laughing happily with each other about it.

Later, as they’re trying to choose a movie, she settles into one of the side chairs while Patrick and David take the couch. 

“What about the latest Avengers?” Patrick asks. David’s mouth twists, but he remains surprisingly quiet.

“Seen it,” Stevie replies. She and Emir had watched it together on one of his rare trips through town. 

“How about Deadpool? Or Venom?” she suggests, joining in on Patrick’s game to try and rile David up. Disappointingly, he doesn’t take the bait, although she can see from the look on his face that he’s well aware of what they’re up to.

Finally they settle on A Star is Born. Despite their teasing, she knows that Patrick doesn’t really want to make David sit through a movie that he won’t enjoy, but she’s surprised to see David trust Patrick enough to let him make the decision for them. 

From the corner of her eye, she watches as Patrick sits on the couch with David in his arms and sees him absentmindedly press a kiss to David’s temple. Patrick catches her watching and he blushes and gives her a small smile as he rests his chin on the top of David’s head. She makes a face at him in return, and he shrugs back unapologetically.

She turns back to the movie so that she can hide the smile that threatens to break out on her face. She’d rather die than admit it, but watching the two of them is making her feel warm and fuzzy inside. If David can find a way to compromise, she thinks, maybe her new long-distance relationship has a chance. With a smile, she pulls out her phone so she that can text Emir and wish him a good night.


End file.
